Ruminations on Reality: Life

The Aether, Time, Consciousness, Intelligence, Matter and Energy

Part V of a multi-part discussion

The ideas in this article are dependent upon concepts which were introduced in Part I, The Aether; Part II, The Three Faces of Time; Part III, Consciousness and Part IV, Intelligence.

I’ve appended a paragraph on Artificial Life to Part IV, Intelligence which was left off unintentionally. It is cogent to the current discussion and you may want to review.

Non-Artificial Life

We’ve already established that everything in existence is conscious to a lesser (organizing) or greater (self-aware) degree depending on the complexity of its ‘nervous system’. As well, we have established that an organism’s intelligence is a sliding scale within their own particular slice of consciousness.

Like a fire, we know that the most basic requirements for life are a ‘spark’, fuel in the form of nutrients, and a catalyst (in our case oxygen) with which to transform that fuel into energy.

Using the map that I’ve outlined above, I submit that true life also requires an electromagnetic attachment from within an organism directly back to the Aether.

The ‘spark of life’ might literally be that for living organisms as well — perhaps a release of energy is required in order to establish that initial connection to the Aether.

It has been observed that a flash of light is released when a sperm enters an egg (sciencealert.com, 27 April 2016, Bec Crew). The same team of researchers observed a similar phenomena at the point of conception in mice. And of course, we are all familiar with the spark of a lighter that gives life to flame.

Without this connection, an organism cannot truly be alive. If this attachment is severed then the organism dies. It is this connection that is the difference between a person who is at one moment alive and the next dead.

Let’s examine further.

• Spark is necessary to establish connection to Aether
• Fuel (food) is necessary only in that it leads to self-sustained electromagnetic flow
• Catalyst (oxygen) is likewise only necessary in that it leads to self-sustained electromagnetic flow

There are only two absolutely fundamental requirements for life:

• An electromagnetic tether to the Aether
• An self-sustained electromagnetic flow

Life might then be separated then into six categories: dependent, independent, self-contained, artificial, inanimate and dead.

• Dependent life might be characterized by gestating or life-supported organisms that are connected to and receive life-giving fuel (nutrients) and catalyst (oxygen) from another organism or machine.
• Independent life would be those organisms that can sustain internal electromagnetic flow and can gain or create more as needed. This includes born or sprouted organisms, bacteria, viruses, etc.
• Self-contained life are those organisms that are alive, but with a finite amount of internal electromagnetism, and without the means to gain or create more. This type of life would include seeds, spores, sperm and egg, etc.
• Artificial life, when technology allows, will consist of true AI supported by a system of adaptive circuits which will allow it to mimic life.
• Inanimate are those things which in their current incarnation have never had an attachment to the Aether. This includes things like stones, minerals, gases, chemicals, liquids, etc.
• Dead is any organism that no longer has an electromagnetic tether to the Aether. This includes all deceased organisms.

Regardless of an organism’s ability to maintain a suitable electromagnetic flow within itself, once the tether to the Aether is severed, life is gone.

We might consider this cord to simply be one’s ‘address’ in the Aether and the spark that created it a kind of registration. There is no reason to think that this tether differs in quality between organisms.

Key Assertions

• There are only two requirements for life.
• A tether between the organism and the Aether is the first— It is this connection to the Aether that bestows true life upon the organism.
• An ability to maintain its own internal electromagnetic flow is the second
• All tethers, regardless of organism, are fundamentally the same

Here ends Part V of my Ruminations. Part VI, Mathematics, can be found here.